How bad is the crime in Woodbridge really???? (Dale City, Lake Ridge: cul-de-sac, apartment)

[jaywallace]

Originally Posted by plf86

"Last time i said that same TRUE statement, i was called a "racist" on this board. So be ready..."

I am not afraid of people calling me racist. We are seeing some of the same issues in the Raleigh area now and I speak up loudly.

I do as well. I've had posts deleted for doing so. Just fyi.

[plf86]

Well if they want to erase my posts, thats OK. But putting lipstick on a pig doesnt change the fact that it is a pig.

If you google Cary in NC it says it is one of the safer places to live, but they tend to report crimes that occur in Cary as occuring in Raleigh.

So much happened in Woodbridge/DC that never got reported. When i had to get my wife a gun and told her to shoot if the gang members that lived across the street came to the door, I knew it was time to move.

[knopfler]

OK, I got a little frustrated by the opinion posts about Prince William County crime, especially the ones that use no more evidence than "look around!" - so I did some research. Actually, more research than I anticipated - getting apples to apples crime data is, as it turns, much harder than it should be.

In 2006 Prince William County had 21.6 crimes per 1,000 residents - http://www.pwcgov.org/docLibrary/PDF/005943.pdf, page 7. This crime rate is comprised of murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft.

Comparing that to the Virginia Statewide figures, the 2006 figures are at http://www.vsp.state.va.us/downloads...ginia_2006.pdf, page 4. Add those categories up, standardize to per 1,000 residents, and you get 28.45 crimes per 1,000 residents.

In other words, living in Prince William County is SAFER than Virginia as a whole.

The two most populous areas of Prince William, by a substantial margin, are Manassas and Woodbridge/Dale City.

I have a strong feeling I'll be cutting and copying this post into future threads about the alleged lack of safety in Prince William County.

[plf86]

I am sure they can make the statistics look however they want. my boss does it every year at raise time The reality is that crime among illegals rarely gets reported. And anyone who reads the papers knows the issues the county has with illegals.

bottom line is would you feel comfortable walking the streets or letting your kids do the same?

[jaywallace]

Originally Posted by knopfler

OK, I got a little frustrated by the opinion posts about Prince William County crime, especially the ones that use no more evidence than "look around!" - so I did some research. Actually, more research than I anticipated - getting apples to apples crime data is, as it turns, much harder than it should be.

In 2006 Prince William County had 21.6 crimes per 1,000 residents - http://www.pwcgov.org/docLibrary/PDF/005943.pdf, page 7. This crime rate is comprised of murder, rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny, and motor vehicle theft.

Comparing that to the Virginia Statewide figures, the 2006 figures are at http://www.vsp.state.va.us/downloads...ginia_2006.pdf, page 4. Add those categories up, standardize to per 1,000 residents, and you get 28.45 crimes per 1,000 residents.

In other words, living in Prince William County is SAFER than Virginia as a whole.

The two most populous areas of Prince William, by a substantial margin, are Manassas and Woodbridge/Dale City.

I have a strong feeling I'll be cutting and copying this post into future threads about the alleged lack of safety in Prince William County.

Crime stats don't tell the whole truth. The statement "go to an area and look around" is about the best advice you can give somebody. PWC crime stats are so low because all of the expensive upscale building that has come into the area in the past 10-15 years. However, in certain areas in Woodbridge, Dale City, Dumfries and Manassas there are section 8 places that are not nice at all.

On a seperate note, i feel MUCH safer in Culpeper (which has much worse crime stats than PWC) than i did in Woodbridge. The town of Dumfries doesn't have a really bad crime index either, but i think the VAST majority of people here know otherwise....

[jaywallace]

Originally Posted by plf86

I am sure they can make the statistics look however they want. my boss does it every year at raise time The reality is that crime among illegals rarely gets reported. And anyone who reads the papers knows the issues the county has with illegals.

bottom line is would you feel comfortable walking the streets or letting your kids do the same?

Good point. I've seen that first hand. Illegals rarely report crimes and don't trust or for that matter like the police or government.

[knopfler]

Originally Posted by nitrovic

Crime stats don't tell the whole truth. The statement "go to an area and look around" is about the best advice you can give somebody. PWC crime stats are so low because all of the expensive upscale building that has come into the area in the past 10-15 years. However, in certain areas in Woodbridge, Dale City, Dumfries and Manassas there are section 8 places that are not nice at all.

On a seperate note, i feel MUCH safer in Culpeper (which has much worse crime stats than PWC) than i did in Woodbridge. The town of Dumfries doesn't have a really bad crime index either, but i think the VAST majority of people here know otherwise....

Of course, in certain areas, Woodbridge, Dale City, Dumfries and Manassas are crappy. Nobody's contesting that - there are some seriously icky places (Bayview, Coverstone, Williamstown, Georgetown South, Irongate, and there are others) where I'd feel uneasy after dark. And I feel sorry for folks who moved into neighborhoods that were good, and then watched them turn crappy. It's happened in some places, and that's exceedingly ... crappy. I just don't want newcomers thinking there aren't nice, safe places in each of those towns with decent schools and good people - cause there are.

Culpeper's crime rater is higher than PWC? That's surprising.

[McScootch]

Here are some detailed census stats on Lake Ridge... Lake Ridge, Virginia - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

No matter where you live in this country, there are going to be neighborhoods that are desirable and neighborhoods that aren't so much desireable. That said, I have never felt unsafe in the 22192 (Lake Ridge) and 22193 (Dale City) zip codes. I've owned houses in both areas. I still own a home in Dale City, so shoot me a PM if there is any interest. I only recently moved south to Stafford County where I got more bang for my housing buck (and better taxes to boot).

I will say that the closer you get to Interstate 95 in Dale City, the worse it gets. Go east of I-95 in Woodbridge proper and forget about it. Though they are trying to bring some high scale shopping centers and new neighborhoods (the revitalization effort is there) it will just be a while before you see any real turn around.

As for the real estate agents..... who cares, you are moving to this area. You will be buying the house therefore not paying the commision. And I would be leary of any real Estate agent that was selling me on ANY type of financial advice.

[jaywallace]

Originally Posted by knopfler

Of course, in certain areas, Woodbridge, Dale City, Dumfries and Manassas are crappy. Nobody's contesting that - there are some seriously icky places (Bayview, Coverstone, Williamstown, Georgetown South, Irongate, and there are others) where I'd feel uneasy after dark. And I feel sorry for folks who moved into neighborhoods that were good, and then watched them turn crappy. It's happened in some places, and that's exceedingly ... crappy. I just don't want newcomers thinking there aren't nice, safe places in each of those towns with decent schools and good people - cause there are.

Culpeper's crime rater is higher than PWC? That's surprising.

Yeah, i know. It shocked me as well. It's actually really high. We have some small little "ghetto" type areas out here and the cops aren't really equipped to deal with it (no vice/narcotic unit, gang unit etc).

I totally agree with you, there are a lot of nice areas in PWC (more nice than not nice). I grew up there, worked there, and my family lives there. Having said that, there are some iffy places. Dale City is an interesting area for instance. I don't consider it "nice" as a whole. There are a lot of gangs and drugs in the A-K sections. However, the newer sections are really nice. I just wouldn't want to live so close to some of the areas.

[McScootch]

Originally Posted by nitrovic

Yeah, i know. It shocked me as well. It's actually really high. We have some small little "ghetto" type areas out here and the cops aren't really equipped to deal with it (no vice/narcotic unit, gang unit etc).

I totally agree with you, there are a lot of nice areas in PWC (more nice than not nice). I grew up there, worked there, and my family lives there. Having said that, there are some iffy places. Dale City is an interesting area for instance. I don't consider it "nice" as a whole. There are a lot of gangs and drugs in the A-K sections. However, the newer sections are really nice. I just wouldn't want to live so close to some of the areas.

That is a good point. Dale City is basically broken down into Sections. Road names starting with the letter "A" (Ashdale) are closer to interstate 95 and they work their way down (West) Dale Boulevard ending around Trentdate. Once you get to to the Lindendale / Maplewood area and keep going west it continues to improve.

Stay away from Ashdale, Baywood, Cloverdale, Darbydale,Forestdale, Glendale, Hillendale, ect. You will also notice that a good number if the secondary roads also incorporate the word "Dale" into them. Traveling West from interstate 95 on Dale Boulevard, you will notice the points in Dale City's history. More Specifically you will see the progress and upgrading of homes through expansion of the city.